Ice-velocipede



(No` MolleL) J. E. LEAHAN.

1GB VELOGIPBDE.

No. 561,405. Patented June 2; 18196,.1

A TTOH/VEY AN DREW BGRVNAM. PHOTO UYHO,WASHIN GTON. UL

NrrnD STATES Fricn.

.TAMFS EDVARD LEAHAN, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

ICEQVELOCIPEDE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 561,405, dated J une 2,1896.

Application iiled January 8,

T0 all whom, it may concern:

leit known that LJAMES EDWARD LEAHAN, of Boston, in the county ofSuffolk and State cf Massachusetts, have invented a new and Improved Ice-Velocipede, of which the following is a full, clear, and eXactdescription.

This invention relates to certain improvements in that class of devicescommonly termed ice-velocipedes, constructed on the principle of abicycle and adapted to be propelled over ice or snow; and the objectofthe invention is to provide a device of this character of a simple andinexpensive construction which shall be light and strong and providedwith means whereby when the device is used for coasting theleastpossible resistance will be offered to its passage over the ice. Theinvention consists in an ice-velocipede having a frame provided withskates or runners and also provided with a driving-wheel adapted to beoperated by the feet of the rider, one of the skates or runners beingvertically movable, so as to be adapted to be raised or lowered to takethe weight of the machine and rider off the drivin g-wheel or to raisesaid wheel entirely out of operative position. The invention alsocontemplates certain novel features of the construction, combination,and arrangement of t-he various parts of the improved ice-velocipedewhereby certain important advantages are attained and the device is madesimpler, cheaper, and otherwise better adapted and more convenient foruse than various other devices heretofore employed, all as will behereinafter fully set forth.

The novel features of the invention will be carefully defined in theclaims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a side view, drawn to a small scale, showing anice-velocipede constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is afragmentary side view, drawn to a larger scale, showing the means forraising and lowering the rear skate or runner. Fig. 3 is a fragmentaryview somewhat similar to Fig. 2, but showing the lever of theskate-raising device in plan. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view showing thefront part of the frame and the 1896.' Serial No. 574,718. (No model.)

i skate or runner employed for steering. Fig. 5 is a sectional viewtaken in the plane indicated by the line a a in Fig. 2 and showing thevertical slide-rod whereon the rear skate is held. Fig. 6 is a similarview showing said rod in its lowered position. Fig. 7 is a secu tionalview taken through the forward skate or runner and showing the meansemployed for securing the same to the steering-post. Fig. S is asomewhat similar sectional view showing the construction of the lowerend of the brake. Fig. 9 is a view somewhat similar to Fig. 8, butshowing the employment of a runner such as may be used when the machineis adapted for use on snow. Fig. 10 is a fragmentary view showing aportion of the wheel-rim. Fig. 11 is a transverse section through therim, and Fig. 12 is aview showing the construction of the clip employedfor holding the brake-stem to the steering-post.

In the views 1 indicates thehead-bearing of the frame of the device,said frame being of the usual diamond pattern, but having its rear forks5 and 6 made somewhat longer for purposes to be hereinafter explained,and in the lower portion of the frame is j ournaled in the usual way acrank-shaft 7, having pedals 8, and provided with a sprocket-wheel 9,over which passes a chain 10, gearing with the sprocket-wheel 1l on thehub of the rear driving-wheel 12, the construction of these parts beingsubstantially the same as thatordinarily employed in bicycles.

The machine is provided with a handle-bar 13,`having its opposite ends1l bent and provided with grips to be operated by the rider in the usualway, and said handle-bar is fixed at its lower end to the steering postor head l5, mounted to turn in the head-bearing l of the frame, andhaving its lower end extended down adjacent to the ground and providedwith oppositely-extendin g flanges 16, secured by means of bolts tosimilar flanges formed on the upper ends of a ska-te 17, as clearlyindicated in Figs. 7 and S.

A brake-lever 18 is mounted on the handlebar in position to beconveniently operated by the rider, and is connected with a brakestem19, mounted to slide alongside the headbearing 1, and extending down thesame and also along the steering-post 15, being'bifurcated at its lowerend, as clearly seen in Fig.

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S, and having its forks arranged in position when the brake-lever 13 isoperated to be pressed against the ice upon opposite sides of the skate17, as will be readily understood. The brake-stein 19 is mounted inclips having projecting perforated portions 21, through which the stempasses and provided with "forks 22, arranged to engage the oppositesides of the steering head or post 15, to which they i ro are clamped bymeans of a bolt or equivalent device 23, as seen in Fig. 12.

The driving-wheel of the device is provided with spokes 24, which may beof the kind usu- I ally employed in bicycle-wheels, said spokes 15 beingsecured at their outer ends to a rim 25, whereonis carried a flat-facedtire 2G, secured in place by means of bolts 27 passing through the tireand rim, and having heads or enlargements 28 of pointed or analogousform at their 2o outer ends, the inner ends of said bolts bein gscrew-threaded to receive nuts 20, whereby they are held in place, aswill be readily understood. The points 23 serve to engage the ice orsnow when the driving-wheel is oper- 2 5 ated' to propel the velocipede.

The horizontal top brace of the frame, as shown in Fig. 1, extends fromthe head-bearing 1 beyond the rear forks 5, as indicated at 30, and thesaddle is, as shown in the draw- 3o ings, arranged in the usual way atthe junction between the top brace and the said forks. To the rear end30 of the top brace of the frame is secured a downwardly extending tubeor brace-bar 31, attached at its upper end to said brace-bar by means ofa casing 32, hollowed out and formed as indicated in Figs. 2, 5, and (l,and said tube 31 extends downward parallel with and just behind the rearvertical brace of the frame.

In the tube 31 is mounted to slide a supporting-bar 33, having its lowerend flanged, as indicated at 34, and bolted or otherwise secured to therear skate 35, and said supporting-bar is provided at its upper partwith a 4 5 vertical slot 34X, formed through it and adapted for thepassage of a guide-pin 35, herein shown as a bolt extending throughslots 36, formed in the opposite Walls of the tube 31, and secured inplace in said tube by means 5o of a nut. By means of this guide-pin thebar 33 is held against turning and is guided in its vertical movement.

rlfhe upper end of the bar 33 is flattened and toothed, as indicated at37, to mesh with teeth formed on a circular rack or gear 33, securedwithin the chamber of the casing 32, being held on the rear end of ashaft 39, journaled in bearings 40 on the top brace of the frame andextending forward along said top brace 6o to a point just in front ofthe saddle, where it is provided with a gear-wheel 41, meshing with asegment-rack 42, secured on a lever 43, pivoted, as seen at 44, to thetop brace of the frame and adapted to be operated by the rider. A detentor pawl 46 is secured to the lever 43 in position to engage with asegment-rack 45, xed to the top brace of the frame, so as to hold thelever 43 against movement when thc skate 35 has been forced down, aswill be hereinafter explained.

In operation the rear skate willbe arranged so that when in its raisedposition the drivin gwheel 12 will only touch the ice sufficiently toenable the points 23 to secure a firm hold in the ice, and under normalconditions the position of the rear skate will not be changed. Incoasting, however, the lever 43 will be manipulated so as to turn theshaft 39 and force the rear skate 35 downward, so as to raise thedriving-wheel 12 slightly, whereupon the said drivin g-wheel will be outof contact with the ice, and the whole weight will rest upon the twoskates 17 and 35.

To stop the device, the brake-lever maybe operated to press thebrake-stem downwardly so as to engage the forked lower end thereof withthe ice on opposite sides of the :forward skate 17.

From the above description it will be understood that the device is ofan extremely simple and inexpensive construction and is well adapted foruse for the purposes for which it is designed, and it will also beunderstood that the invention. is susceptible of considerablemodilication without material departure from its principles and spirit,and for this reason I do not wish to be understood as limitin gmyselftothe exact form and arrangement of the parts herein set forth. Forexample, when constructed for ladies use the forward portion of the topbrace of the frame will be of course omitted or dropped in the usualway, and the lever 43 will be pivoted behind the saddle or in any otherappropriate place, and when the device is to be used on snow flat andbroad faced runners, such as those indicated at 17 in Fig. El, will beby preference employed in lieu of the skates 17 and 35.

Having thus described my invention, l claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- 1. An iee-veloeipede, comprising a frame having aforward skate and a driving-wheel, and provided with a saddle, a tubeextending downward from the upper port-ion' of the frame, asupporting-bar arranged to slide in said tube, a runner carried on thelower end of said barand arranged adj aeent to the driving-wheel, and anoperating device arranged when actuated to move said supporting-barlongitudinally to press the runner carried thereon downwardly, wherebythe drivingwheel is raised from the ice, substantially as set forth.

2. In an ice-velocipede, the combination of a frame, a forward runnerthereon, a drivin g-wheel, a tube extending downward on the frame, asupporting-bar mounted to slide in the tube, a rear runner carried onthe lower end of the supporting-bar in position to engage the iceadjacent to the driving-wheel, the upper end of said bar being providedwith teeth, a shaft extending longitudinally of the upper portion of theframe and provided with IOO tog

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a toothed raek engaging the teeth on the bar, and means for turning saidshaft, substantially as set forth.

3. In an iee-veloeipede, the combination of a frame having a forwardrunner and a driving-wheel, a supporting-bar mounted to slide downwardon the frame, a runner earried on the lower end of said bar, a shaftextending longitudinally on the frame and adapted to be turned, and aeonneetion between the shaft and said har whereby when the shaft isturned the har is moved downward, substantially as set forth.

4. In an iee-veloeipede, the Combination lever pivoted on the frame andprovided with a segmental rack to engage the gear-wheel, substantiallyas set forth.

4 JAMES EDWARD LEAHAN.

Witnesses:

JOHN E. MoRRrssnY, EDWARD J. BURKE.

